Midnight Rain
by Fallen Quills
Summary: Reeling from the shock of war and attacks, the Village Hidden in the Leaves can't really afford to send two ANBU to the world of Harry Potter on a mere guarding mission. But it also can't afford to keep these two ANBU members from this mission...
1. Prologue

**A/N: Contrary to popular opinion, I do not own Harry Potter or Naruto. They belong to JK Rowling and Masashi Kishimoto respectively.**

The Hokage sat back in his seat, sighing. It was a nice seat- a tall back, swivel seat, comfortable leather, but right now he was not thinking about furniture. He had recently been reinstated as the Hokage following the demise of the Yondaime, forced into a position from which he had retired a few years previously. He looked at the letter lying on his desk, the one that was currently responsible for the predicament that he was currently in. It was from an old friend of his, one that he had not been in touch with since before the third shinobi war. It was a letter requiring the assistance of a couple of shinobi to watch over a certain person who was of great importance, yet had a knack of attracting trouble. Unfortunately, Konoha was still reeling from the Kyubbi attack and there simply wasn't anyone to spare. All the chuunin and above who were able were being sent off left, right and centre on missions and the genin were required to help rebuild Konoha, and anyway there weren't any spare jounin that could be sent with them to supervise. And as for ANBU… well, they would just be bored. As well as that, they too were required for missions. Although…

And there it was. A seed of an idea planted itself firmly in the Sandaime's mind. There was one young ANBU member who _could _use time away from the village. Young Hatake Kakashi, also known as Wolf, was the youngest member of ANBU, and more importantly was the last of Team Minato, Minato himself having been killed in the recent attack. And then there was Crow… Crow was an unusual kunoichi. She was the second youngest in ANBU, being two years older than Kakashi, and had also lost her father and genin team during the third shinobi war. However, it didn't appear to have affected her much and she carried on taking missions. She had been promoted to the ranks of ANBU at the end of the war, and was especially useful due to her ability of being able to detect and lay intricate traps, which had saved many lives. Currently, Crow, or Sato Amaya as she was known when not in ANBU uniform, was lying in the hospital after being badly injured on a mission. This guarding job would be a perfect opportunity to help heal the both of them- both mentally and physically. Nodding in grim satisfaction, the Sandaime began writing a letter.

_Dear Dumbledore-sama,_

_Thank you for your letter. Unfortunately, you have caught me at a time when Konoha is recovering from both a war and an attack on the village, and thus we have very few shinobi that can be sent to your school for a whole year. However, if you are willing, I have a proposition._

_There are two shinobi who are of the highest ranking who would be able to take up this mission. However, they are in need of recuperation, both mentally and physically, and I fear that it would be impossible at such a time here in the village. They are young, around the boy of which you speak of own age, and very adept at protection mission. My proposition is this: I send you these two shinobi and in return, a bond can form between us and your school, or even world. During these troubled times, alliances and friendships are of the utmost importance._

_I hope that you can understand the situation and that a stronger bond can be formed between our village and your world._

_Yours, _

_Sarutobi Hiruzen_

_Sandaime Hokage, Konohagakure._

Sealing the letter, the Sandaime sent it off using the large tawny owl that had delivered Dumbledore's first letter, and prepared himself for a wait.

0o0o0o0o0

Two weeks later, a sullen Kakashi was packing his bag for a year- long mission. He didn't want to go, but it was an order and orders had to be obeyed. All he knew about the mission was that he was protecting some gaki that probably didn't need to be guarded and potentially forming an alliance. He scowled. Kakashi knew the real reason as to why he was going. The rest of the village seemed to think that he was going to go into a depression and they couldn't deal with it, wouldn't deal with. Konoha was a battered and bruised village that was suffering the after effects of war and attacks. They didn't have the time nor energy to watch or help some kid go through a depression. They had their own lives to rebuild.

Kakashi swept his eyes around the small space that were his living quarters in ANBU, before donning his mask and making his way to the small hospital that was used by injured ANBU. There, you could expect instant treatment and no questions. No one badgered you about missed check-ups and you didn't have to watch other members going past with horrific injuries, and you could almost return to human again. He paused in front of a door, before sliding it open. Crow, the ANBU member that was on the same team as him for this mission, was standing, albeit bent over slightly and clutching the wall for support. The third was there, as was someone who looked as if he could be his older, civilian brother. Kakashi entered the room silently, kneeling before the Hokage.

"Ah, Wolf, good to see you could make it." Yeah right, Kakashi thought. It wasn't like he had a whole lot of choice in the matter. "For this mission you won't be required to wear your mask." Kakashi nodded and reluctantly took off his Wolf mask, clipping it to his belt. He didn't need to look to know that Crow- or Amaya as she was now- had done the same. "I believe you have been told the details?" Kakashi nodded. "Good. Right, Dumbledore-sama here is going to, ah, _transport _you to where the mission is." Kakashi flickered his eyes over to where the Dumbledore person stood and nodded once more. Dumbledore offered his arm and Kakashi looked at it sarcastically.

"Oh, yes, I don't believe you have apparition here. You will need to take a hold of my arm. Miss Sato, if you could take the other…" Amaya hobbled over and took Dumbledore's left arm. With a smile at the Hokage, Dumbledore spun on the spot and the small hospital room disappeared.

Amaya's first thought was that it was like being forced through a tube. It then changed to feeling like being forced through a tiny, narrow gap which was the perfect place to hide part of a trap. They spun faster and faster, and Amaya was starting to feel dizzy when the spinning slowed then stopped altogether. She swayed a little as all of her weight was placed on her bad leg, but before she could topple over she felt a body lean against her, propping her up. She rearranged the weight, and the body disappeared. Amaya didn't have to look to know that it had been Kakashi who had come to her rescue.

When she was stable, Amaya took a look at their surroundings. They seemed to be outside a series of large houses in the middle of a square. Automatically Amaya noted the possible escape routes, possible hidden traps and places where enemies could lurk in the shadows. There were too many for her liking, and she felt bare and exposed without her mask on. Her hand crept down towards her mission pack, and tensed, ready to attack or defend should the occasion arise. She did not like feeling this vulnerable.

Dumbledore handed her a piece of paper with writing on it in kanji, and Amaya's eyes read the note quickly, memorising the details as she did so.

_The Headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix can be found at number 12, Grimmauld Place._

She passed the note back to Dumbledore, and suddenly there was a rumbling sound. Amaya became even tenser, but a hand on her arm stopped her from springing- not that she actually could, thanks to her injuries. Houses number 11 and 13 had started to move apart, to the obliviousness of the occupants inside, and a new house appeared. She frowned.

"Was that some kind of genjutsu?" Apparently Kakashi was just as curious as she was. Dumbledore shook his head, but did not elaborate.

"After you," he said instead and Kakashi and Amaya climbed the steps and entered the house.

Kakashi's eyes (well, eye) narrowed as they entered a long, dark hallway. He could hear voices coming from a room, and sensed several civilians standing upstairs. He pressed himself to the wall to let Dumbledore lead him and Amaya down the hallway and into the room that held the voices. It was full of people who immediately silenced as Dumbledore and the two shinobi entered.

"Dumbledore! We weren't expecting you until tomorrow!" exclaimed a red-haired woman.

"Ah yes. It seems that I am ahead of schedule. Unfortunately this is only a flying visit; I only came to introduce you to these two." He indicated to Kakashi and Amaya behind him, and for the first time since entering the room the wizards and witches noticed the shinobi. Kakashi wanted to squirm; he hated attention of any sort.

"These two have come to… ah… _guard _Harry for the year. They come from the Hidden Continents- Alastor, I assume you have heard of them?" A grizzled, scarred man nodded. Kakashi thought that he could pass for a shinobi any day. "Anyway, where was I? Oh yes, their leader has asked us that, in return for their services, that we form an alliance with their village. They are emerging from a long war and an attack on their village, you see." Dumbledore then babbled on for a bit, Kakashi tuning out. He noticed that the red-haired woman's expression turned from sympathy to shock to pity during the speech, and Kakashi was uncomfortable with the way that she scrutinised him. It reminded him a lot of Nara Shikaku's wife. Strict, but _motherly. _Eventually Dumbledore stopped speaking and opened the door, going upstairs. Amaya hobbled after him and Kakashi realised that they were off to meet the other occupants of the house.

The journey up the stairs was uneventful, with no scenery that particularly caught his eye. Eventually they made it to a small room with a couple of beds in it, one of which was unoccupied. Several teenagers were gathered there in the room. They too looked at Dumbledore expectantly.

"Good evening, everyone. I have something to tell you. This year, Hogwarts is taking part in an exchange programme, of sorts. Much like the tournament last year, this programme is to strengthen bonds between countries. These two are refugees from their own country, which has been subject to a long and bloody war. They have each come here seeking friendship, and I am counting on you to provide them with that." The teens nodded gravely, and Kakashi restrained a snort. Man, this guy would be great in ANBU, being able to spin a tale like that and still have everyone's complete trust.

"Good. Well then, I believe that is all. Good day." With that Dumbledore swept from the room, leaving Kakashi and Amaya subject to the curious stares and questions of the others in the room. Amaya looked at him in panic and he noticed that her face was strained. He then realised that she probably needed to sit down, that the travel and then the walking up the stairs and the long bout of standing was not helping with her injuries. So he sat down on the unoccupied bed, and Amaya sat next to him.

"Where about are you from?" asked a girl with long red hair.

"Somewhere near Japan," Kakashi said drily.

"Oh. What are your names?" This time the smallest of the three red haired boys spoke.

"Kakashi Hatake."

"Amaya Sato."

"Well, this is Fred, George, Ron and Ginny Weasley, and I'm Hermione Granger," said the bushy haired girl, indicating each person.

"It's very nice to meet you," said Amaya politely, but in a cold detached tone that Kakashi knew was reserved for clients. The motherly red-head appeared at the door just then.

"Oh, you're settling in. Um, we weren't expecting you until tomorrow, so I haven't got any beds ready-"

"That's okay. We are used to sleeping on futons anyway." The woman nodded, relieved slightly.

"Well, Kakashi can sleep in the bed if he wishes, although it would only be for one night. You'll be sharing with Ron and Harry, when he arrives. Amaya, if you'd like to follow me. You'll be sharing with Ginny and Hermione." Amaya stood up and limped off. When she was gone, Hermione turned to Kakashi.

"Why was she limping?" she asked curiously.

"Leg injury," was all the reply she got. Hermione looked down, and then the room started to clear, leaving Kakashi alone to unpack his things. He revelled in the silence as he scanned the room to look for a place where he could set up a temporary shrine to Obito, Minato and Rin.

**I got this idea a while back, from Pridian Moon (a great fic, check it out if you like angsty Naruto/HP crossovers) and for ages it was going to be set during the fourth book but I didn't want to do the whol tournament thing. Anyway, this was pretty long (for me) and it was only the prologue. Plus I have a lot of chapter ideas… so watch this space!**

**Please Review!**

**Fallen Quills**


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Amaya sat in the room that was shared with the two other girls, unfurling her futon and laying it down carefully away from the door. She put her pack down on top of it, rolled up her trouser leg and unwrapped the bandages covering her left leg. She let her thoughts drift as she changed her bandages, and before she knew it she was crawling through a tight space, the sounds of explosions behind her. She crawled faster, detonating more paper bombs as she did so, crawling and clawing her way out of the tunnel that she had dug, the sounds of her team calling her name over and over again…

"Amaya! Amaya! Hey, are you alright?" Hermione shook the kunoichi's shoulder and instinctively she spun around, twisting Hermione's arm up and around her shoulder. She blinked, then immediately let go when she realised exactly what she was doing. Hermione stumbled away, rubbing her arm.

"Sorry," muttered Amaya, and she rolled down her trouser leg before exiting the room. Ginny looked at Hermione, and saw that the expression of confusion on her face was echoed on Hermione's. Directly above them, Amaya was leaning against the wall, pushing away the memories that had drifted to the surface. She couldn't, wouldn't, dwell on them, not during a mission. Especially not during a mission. She slowly stood up again and wandered down the corridor, making mental notes of all the different doors and possible hiding places. She came to a door, one that had scratching noises coming from it, and cautiously she opened it, fingering her kunai pouch. A large, brilliantly orange eye blinked up at the intrusion. The owner of the eye stood up, and Amaya's own eyes went huge. Whatever that… thing… was, it wasn't human.

0o0o0o0

Kakashi sat before the small, temporary shrine, hidden in a useful spot at the back of the large wardrobe. His futon had already been laid out- he didn't want to sleep in the bed to just have to give it up again- and had placed his (few) possessions in the chest of drawers in the corner. He lit some incense at his shrine, mentally noting that he needed to get some more at some point, and said a silent prayer. There was a creak outside the door and before it could open the Kakashi had hidden his shrine, finished his prayer and was studying a scroll. He looked up as the red-headed mother (Kakashi couldn't remember her name) poked her head around the door.

"Hello dear. Just letting you know that it's dinner now. We're eating in the kitchen, we haven't managed to clean the dining room yet and goodness knows what's lurking in there." The witch withdrew her head again and Kakashi put aside his scroll before following her out of the door and down the stairs to the kitchen.

When he arrived, he saw that that all of the children were scurrying around, carrying various plates, pots and cutlery. Amaya was nowhere to be seen, and Kakashi was not feeling particularly charitable and sat down at the end of the large, wooden scrubbed table in the middle of the room. The scarred, grizzled man that could pass for the shinobi noticed him and limped towards him.

"Alright? You're… Hatake, correct?" Kakashi nodded. "Alastor Moody." He held his hand out and Kakashi stared at it until it fell to his side. "So, you're from the shinobi continent, eh? I heard that they were all in a war a few years ago…"

"Yes." Kakashi replied curtly, not looking at the man. "But please do not speak of my home country, it could compromise security." Moody nodded.

"By the way… you may want to rescue your teammate. She seems to have found Buckbeak."

"Buckbeak?"

"A hippogriff. Sirius can show you where he's kept." A wizard sitting gloomily further down the table looked up when Moody mentioned his name.

"Did you need me, Moody?"

"Why don't you show young Hatake here Buckbeak?" Sirius scanned the silver haired shinobi, and nodded.

"Come with me then." Sirius stood up and left the room. Kakashi followed after him, and the two of them climbed the stairway all the way to the top before coming to a door. There was a murmured voice on the other side, and Kakashi could hear a string of swear words in Japanese. Sirius opened the door, and the wizard and shinobi were greeted with the sight of Amaya standing in the opposite them, her back to the door and staring at a large creature in the middle of the room furling and unfurling its wings that Kakashi assumed was Buckbeak.

"Ah. I see that you've met Buckbeak." Amaya swivelled her head slowly, so that Sirius and Kakashi could see the side of her face, her eyes narrowed.

"That… _thing _has a NAME?!" she hissed, something that sounded like anger lacing her tone, but Kakashi knew that it was just tension.

"Of course it does. It's my… ah… pet."

"What _is_ it? I thought it was some sort of summons, but it doesn't have a chakra signature."

"Moody-san said it was a hippogriff."

"Yes, Buckbeak here is a hippogriff, one that was condemned to death but Ron, Hermione and Harry, my godson, saved him."

"Fascinating as all that is, can you please tell me what I have to do to get away from it?"

"Well, if you bow to it, and it bows back, then it'll leave you alone." Amaya and Kakashi stared incredulously at the wizard.

"Bow? _Bow_? How is a creature meant to _bow_?" asked Amaya, her voice rising.

"Try it and you'll see." After one last, suspicious glare at Sirius, Amaya turned back to face the hippogriff and bowed. The hippogriff stared imperiously for a moment or two, before sinking its head down into a slight bow.

"Great. Now that we've _bowed _to each other, can we please leave?" Sirius chuckled lightly.

"Of course. Molly says that it's time for dinner anyway." With that the two ninja and the wizard left Buckbeak and made their way downstairs. By this time, most of the seats were occupied, and Amaya and Kakashi hurriedly made their way to a pair of seats that were slightly in the shadows. Once that had sat down, Mrs Weasley placed a large dish of Shepherd's pie in the middle of the table, before dishing up large platefuls of it and passing them along the table. When Amaya received hers, she poked the mashed potato with the piece of cutlery that she was told was called a fork, the fork feeling odd in her hand. She ran through her poison checks thoroughly, before scooping up a spoonful of the food and eating it. A glance to her left told her that Kakashi was doing the same, and, looking further down the table, curiously enough Moody was also checking for poison albeit not in quite the same manner as Kakashi and Amaya. There was a scrape, then a thud as the chair on Amaya's right was pulled back and then knocked over. She looked up and saw a young woman with bright pink hair apologising to whoever was listening whilst picking the chair up. She was handed a plate of food, and Hermione and Ginny, who were sitting opposite, greeted her.

"Hi Tonks! How're you?"

"I'm fine. Who are these two then?" she asked conversationally, gesturing towards Kakashi and Amaya.

"We're from Japan. My name's Kakashi and this is my te- this is Amaya." Kakashi cursed his near slip of his tongue, and vowed to be more careful in future.

"Wow, I've never been to Japan. Been loads of places, but never Japan. You know, I've never met anyone with that colour hair before. Is it natural?" Amaya looked up, startled. She too had noticed that her sky blue hair seemed a little… unusual.

"Um, yes." Truth. "But I've never met anyone with pink hair before." Lie- Haruno-san had pink hair, and so, it appeared, did his baby daughter. Not that she saw either of them very much.

"Touché. Well, I'm a Metamorphmagus, so I can change it, but I like pink." Amaya nodded listlessly, and soon Tonks was swept up into a conversation with Hermione and Ginny.

Soon the meal was finished, although the two shinobi did not eat much to Mrs Weasley's concern- they were much too thin! A sleepy air settled over the table as the occupants- apart from Kakashi and Amaya- held small conversations. With a yawn, Mrs Weasley glanced at her watch and gasped.

"Goodness, it's gotten late. Up to bed, all of you, shoo shoo!" She made little gestures with her hands and grumbling the teenagers at the table stood up and made their way up to their various rooms. Kakashi darted into his before Ron could get there, lying on his bed and stripping off his armour so that he was sitting in his usual jounin attire. Ron entered the room five minutes later, and found Kakashi lying on his bed, reading the same scroll as he was reading when Mrs Weasley had come to get him for dinner.

"Harry's coming tomorrow!" said Ron cheerfully as he pulled on a pair of pyjamas that were several inches too short for him. Kakashi grunted. Undeterred by the monosyllabic grunt, Ron continued. "You know, Harry Potter, the one that defeated You-know-who."

"Who?" Ron looked at Kakashi, a look of shock flitting across his face.

"You don't know who You-know-who is?"

"No."

"Oh. Well, it might be better to let Harry explain tomorrow then." With that Ron got into bed, and Kakashi put his scroll away, not that he intended to sleep. He never seemed to be able to sleep now, not since he had become a jounin. It was odd, really. He had always been able to sleep before.

0o0o0o0

The night slipped into the early hours of the morning, and Amaya rolled over, trying to sleep. Finally she sat up- she knew when it would be useless to try and sleep. Spying the window opposite the futon, she silently got up and padded over to it, before lifting it open just enough for her to squeeze through. Gathering chakra on her feet, she climbed out on to the wall and walked up to the roof, before sitting down and surveying the lights of the city below her. There was a muffled thud, before the sound of someone cursing, and looking down she saw Kakashi training in the small, dusty yard at the back of the house which looked as if no one had been in it for several decades. Weeds pushed themselves up through cracks in the hard dusty soil, and there was a withered old tree stump that was currently taking a beating from Kakashi. She stretched her leg, testing it, but winced almost immediately. No, perhaps another week before training. She sighed, and tilted her head up to the sky, and frowned. The moon was out, as were the stars, but the light was different here- slightly hazier then it was in Konoha. There was a slight breeze that stirred the hot August air, cooling Amaya's face momentarily, and she closed her eyes. She shifted so that she was lying down, and opened her eyes again. There was another breeze, and if she listened carefully enough, then she could almost hear the gentle breathing of her teammates as they slumbered nearby on some mission far, far away from home.

0o0o0o0o0

Kakashi shifted in his futon, the early morning sun a spotlight somewhere around his midriff. Squinting open his eyes, he realised that it was dawn, and that despite being up until the early hours of the morning, he was awake. Kakashi sighed. That was ANBU for you.

Deciding that he wouldn't be able to get back to sleep again, he stood up and dressed silently, before silently going downstairs to the kitchen. Amaya was already there, and untouched mug of tea and plate of toast in front of her. Mrs Weasley- Kakashi had found out her name at dinner the night before- was also there, as were various members of the Order. None of the children were there, Kakashi noted absently.

"Oh, hello Kakashi dear, help yourself to tea and toast." Mrs Weasley gestured the rack of toast and teapot in the middle of the table. Feeling compelled to do so, Kakashi took one of the slices with a murmur of thanks, and poured himself a cup of tea. He sat down near Amaya, and took a bite of his breakfast. Conversation gradually welled up inside the room as the occupants forgot about the shinobi, and deciding to observe rather than participate, Kakashi watched as the wizards discussed the upcoming events this evening.

"So, the boy's aunt and uncle are leaving for this so called competition at about six-thirty, meaning that we also should leave here at six-thirty." Said Tonks, examining what looked like a large, squiggly map.

"Correct. All the guards are arriving here for six, so that should leave us enough time to get organised." Moody said, leaning on his staff and peering at the map over Tonks' shoulder.

"Well then, if that's all settled, I'd better be getting off to the Ministry." Tonks stood up and with a wave to everyone at the table, left the room. Moody also left, as did Mr Weasley, leaving Mrs Weasley and the two shinobi in the kitchen. Mrs Weasley sighed and sat down, still not noticing the shinobi. Kakashi revelled in the silence. He hated large gatherings, avoided crowds and despised things such as festivals and parties, especially since the war had finished. Obito, Rin and Minato-sensei had always dragged him to them, and although he did not like them particularly much back then, he was able to tolerate them. But now, when they had gone, it just reminded him too much of his team, a team that had been shattered into a million pieces.

The sound of footsteps coming down the stairs broke Kakashi out of his musings, and he looked up in time to see the children- or gaki, as Kakashi mentally dubbed them- enter the kitchen, still rubbing sleep out of their eyes. Something pricked at Kakashi's heart, and he wondered when he had lost the innocence and naivety that the gaki still retained, despite nearing adulthood. Maybe it had been when he had first become a genin, or maybe it had been when he became a chuunin. One of the two time periods, anyway. There was a great scraping of chairs, and Mrs Weasley bustled around, getting breakfast ready. Kakashi found himself in the middle of a large conversation about when Harry would get there.

"Quiet, you lot. He isn't getting here until this evening. Now, eat up, we've got a busy day today. I'm planning on cleaning the study today, and you are ALL helping, got it?" There was a muttered 'yes' from the occupants, and for the first time since Amaya and Kakashi had entered, Mrs Weasley noticed them.

"Oh, sorry, I forgot you two were here. Goodness, you are quiet aren't you? Well, as you might have guessed, the house hasn't been inhabited for years, and so we're in the process of cleaning it. You're welcome to help, if you want." Kakashi and Amaya nodded quietly, Amaya thinking about what a waste it was to let a large place like this crumble away for years with no one living in it.

After breakfast, the eight of them climbed the stairs to the study, and spent the day clearing all sort of things out of the cupboards. By the time they had finished, the early stages of dusk had appeared and various members of the Order were appearing in the small, dark hallway. The children (Amaya was slightly kinder in her dubbing then Kakashi) lined the staircase to wave off the guards, and Kakashi and Amaya had retreated to various places outside- Kakashi the garden, Amaya the rooftop. She liked the rooftop; she could see right across the city peacefully and nobody thought to look for her up there. She saw several blurred figures streaking across the sky, and she assumed that it was the guards that were off to collect the Potter kid. She had been shown a broomstick earlier on in the day, and flying was definitely something that had piqued her interest. However, she couldn't help but feel that the stick of wood was unlikely to be able to hold much weight, let alone fly. Unfortunately, the broomstick had been withdrawn before she could use a probing jutsu on it. She sighed, and stretched her arms. After years of near constant battles, it felt strange to not be using her muscles and limbs. The only time that she had paused in the endless fights was when she lay in hospital, the right side of her ribcage shattered, and slightly concussed. It was there that she had been told that her teammates had not made it home.

Shaking her head to rid herself of unwanted memories, she carefully walked down the wall to the open window that was directly below her. Her procrastinating had taken longer than she had realised, and it was nearly time for the Order meeting. Glancing towards the garden, she saw that Kakashi, to, had abandoned his training and gone back inside again. So Kakashi had decided to go to the meeting. Well, it didn't require both of them, and with the Potter kid arriving soon, Amaya decided she might as well go and read her scroll again in her room. Slipping inside, she settled on her bed and opened up the scroll. Just as she had found her place again, there was the sound of locks being opened on the front door which was followed by a whispered conversation and the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs. Amaya ignored the noises, and carried on reading. Presently, the sounds of shouting floated up through the house and putting down her scroll, she wandered down the hallway to the room where the noise was coming from.

"ME, I'VE BEEN STUCK WITH THE DURSLEYS FOR A MONTH! AND I'VE HANDLED MORE THAN YOU TWO'VE EVER MANAGED AND DUMBLEDORE KNOWS IT- WHO SAVED THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE? WHO GOT RID OF RIDDLE? WHO SAVED BOTH YOUR SKINS FROM THE DEMENTORS?" By this time Amaya had sidled into the room completely unnoticed, and she could see that Hermione had tears in her eyes.

"WHO HAD TO GET PAST THE DRAGONS AND THE SPHINXES AND EVERY OTHER FOUL THING LAST YEAR? WHO SAW _HIM _COME BACK? WHO HAD TO ESCAPE FROM HIM? ME!"

"I know, Harry, I know-"

"So what? So what? You know, Potter-kun, from what I've heard you're meant to be this big hero, but I've never met a hero who talks to his friends like that." There was a stunned silence and Harry wheeled angrily around to see a girl about his age glaring at him. She had pale, pale skin, green eyes and, curiously enough, sky blue hair pulled back into a plait. Several blue strands hung over the top of a headband tied around her forehead, which had a rectangular metal plate with a swirly leaf carving on the front. She was dressed in dark blue- almost black- loose clothing, with armour over the top and something that looked suspiciously like a sword strapped to her back. A white mask that Harry couldn't quite see hung from her waist, and there were bandages wrapped around her legs and black gloves with metal plates covering her hands.

"Who are you to talk to me like that? And how do you know my name?"

"Curiosity killed the cat, Potter-kun, but in answer to your question my name is Amaya Sato."

"And my name is Kakashi Hatake," said a new voice from the doorway. Turning round, Harry saw that the newcomer was dressed similarly to Amaya, but his headband covered his left eye. He also had a shock of silver grey hair sticking up at an impossible angle. "And anyway, I thought it was stupidity killed the cat and curiosity was framed?" Amaya shrugged.

"Either would work in his case."

**A/N: I wanted to update this yesterday, but according to my timetable MR is due for its update on Mondays anyway. Anyhoo, I have some things I want to tell you guys:**

**Thank you sooo much for the reviews, Favourites and alerts. Seriously. I have never received more for a first chapter than when I posted my two first chapters of each of my crossovers. It was overwhelming. I love each and every one of you.**

**This, by far, is the longest chapter I have EVER written, in over a year of writing. I told you I had lots of ideas…**

**For those of you who were wondering, there isn't going to be any pairings in this story. And I will try my best not to make Amaya perfect, 'cos I find perfect characters insufferable. I hate them. So she will have her flaws. Actually, she's quite a quiet character, and if you are wondering, her hairstyle is basically a sky blue version of Astrid's from How to Train Your Dragon. (I love that film. Toothless reminds me of my cat!)**

**Please Review!**

**Fallen Quills. **


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Harry glared at Amaya. Amaya stared impassively at Harry. Hermione and Ron shot nervous looks between the two of them. Kakashi leant against a wall and whipped out a book, turning to a page. Eventually there was a loud crack and the two Weasley twins appeared. Hermione jumped about two foot into the air.

"Stop _doing _that!" said Hermione weakly, sinking onto one of the beds.

"Hello Harry," said George, beaming at him. "We thought that we heard your dulcet tones."

"Yeah, don't bottle your anger up like that Harry, let it all out. I'm sure that there's a person fifty miles away who didn't hear you." Amaya snorted softly from her corner and Harry shot her a glare.

"You two passed you apparition tests then?" asked Harry grumpily.

"With distinction," said Fred, puffing his chest up proudly.

"What's Apparition?" asked Kakashi monotonously, glancing up from his book. Five bemused stares came his way.

"Don't you know what Apparition is?" said Harry incredulously.

"It's a form of transport; you sort of teleport from one place to another, but as it's potentially very dangerous you have to be over 17 to be able to do it and you have to pass a test."

"Oh. We have something similar, but it's called something else where we come from," said Kakashi, returning to his book.

"What do you call it?" asked Hermione curiously. Amaya tapped the side of her nose mysteriously.

"Why didn't you just walk downstairs? It would've taken you thirty seconds," said Ron bitterly.

"Time is Galleons, little brother," said Fred. "Anyway, Harry, think you could keep it down? It's interfering with the reception. Extendable ears," he added, seeing Harry's confused look and lifting a long, flesh coloured string. "We're trying to hear what's going on downstairs." The door opened, and Ginny appeared in the room.

"Hello Harry! I thought it was your voice that I'd heard." Ginny turned to Fred and George. "It's a no-go with the Extendable Ears. Mum put another Imperturbable Charm on the kitchen door."

"How d'you know?" asked George, looking slightly crestfallen.

"Tonks told me how to find out. You just chuck stuff at the door, and if it can't make contact then it's been Imperturbed. I've been flicking dung bombs at it from the top of the stairs and they just soar away." Fred heaved a huge sigh. Harry turned away from their conversation, looking at Amaya again. She raised an eyebrow.

"Yes?" she asked impatiently.

"Where do you come from? Why exactly are you here?"

"We're uh, here to 'strengthen bonds between our country and your country.'" At Harry's blank look, Amaya sighed and rephrased the answer. "Basically we're here for diplomacy." Didn't this kid know anything?

"Right… Anyway, what is this 'Order' thing anyway?"

"It's an organisation formed by Dumbledore to defeat Voldemort. Unfortunately, that's all we know; we're not allowed in meetings. Well, we know that they're guarding something, but not what, thanks to the Extendable Ears." Said Hermione rapidly.

"It's a shame that they put that charm on the door, it's an important meeting tonight. I really fancied hearing what Snape's up to."

"Snape!" said Harry quickly. "Is he here?"

"Yeah," said George shutting the door and sitting next to Hermione on the bed. "Giving a report. Top secret."

"Git," said Fred idly.

"He's on our side now," said Hermione reprovingly. Ron snorted.

"Doesn't stop him from being a git. The way he looks at us when he sees us."

"Bill doesn't like him either," said Ginny, as if that settled the matter. Harry wasn't sure if his anger had abated yet, but he sank on the bed regardless, his thirst for knowledge overtaking his desire to shout. Although the glares that the blue haired girl was throwing at him wasn't improving his mood.

"Is Bill here? I thought that he was in Egypt."

"He applied for a desk job so he could come home and work for the Order. He misses the tombs, but," Fred smirked, "there are compensations."

"What d'you mean?"

"Remember old Fleur Delacour? Well, she's got a job at Gringotts to 'eemprove 'er Eeenglish-'"

"And Bill's been giving her a lot of private lessons," sniggered George. Kakashi rolled his eye- they were, despite being a few years older, definitely gaki.

"What about Charlie and Percy?" The mood in the room darkened.

"Charlie's in the Order, but still in Romania. Dumbledore wanted as many foreign wizards as possible," explained Ron.

"And whatever you do, don't mention Percy in front of Mum and Dad," said Ginny darkly.

"Why not?"

"Potter-kun, remember what I said earlier about the cat?" Amaya's sudden entrance into the conversation made everyone- apart from Kakashi- jump. Harry scowled.

"Long story short, he and Dad got into a huge fight that ended with Percy storming out. He said all of this stuff about following the wrong side, and that Dumbledore was losing his credibility." Said Ginny, ignoring Amaya.

"What?"

"It gets worse. He then said that Dad had no ambition, and that that was why he never got anywhere in the Ministry, and that he's been struggling against Dad's lousy reputation ever since he had joined the Ministry. Then he said that if Dad was going to go with Dumbledore, then he, Percy, knew where his loyalty lay and that he didn't belong to this family anymore."

There was the sound of footsteps up the stairs, and Mrs Weasley poked her head around the door just after Fred and George had disapparated with two hearty cracks.

"The meeting's over now, you can come downstairs. Everyone's dying to see you Harry, and who's been leaving dung bombs outside the kitchen door?"

"Crookshanks. He loves playing with them," said Ginny unblushingly. Kakashi silently approved her lying skills.

"Oh, I thought that it might have been Kreacher. Remember to keep your voices down in the hall and Ginny, your hands are filthy, what have you been doing? Go and wash them immediately." Ginny followed her mother out of the room, and Kakashi and Amaya slouched out after them, leaving Ron, Hermione and Harry alone in the room. There was an awkward silence between the three of them.

"Look," he began, but Ron shook his head and Hermione said, "we knew that you'd be angry, but you've got to understand, Dumbledore wouldn't let us say anything…"

"Yeah, I know." Said Harry shortly, casting around for a topic that did not involve his headmaster.

"Who's Kreacher?"

"The house elf who lives here. Nutter. Never met one like him."

"He's not a nutter, Ron."

"His life's ambition is to have his head on a plaque on the wall! Is that normal Hermione?"

"Well- well, if he's a bit unusual, then that's not his fault."

"What's up with Sato anyway? What's her problem?" Hermione sighed.

"I don't know. Dumbledore just told us that she and the other one, Hatake, were from Japan where their people had just been through a massive war and that they were refugees, sent for the year to help form bonds with us. Apart from that, I don't know anything about them."

"They haven't heard of much. Hatake didn't even know about You-know-who." Harry frowned. Just who were these people?

Harry led the other two out of the room and on to the landing, but before they could descend down the stairs-

"Hold it!" Ron breathed, flinging out an arm. "They're still in the hall, we may be able to hear something." The three of them looked over and saw that the gloomy hallway below was crowded with wizards and witches. Kakashi and Amaya stood unseen in separate shadows, listening and observing. Before Kakashi's eyes a flesh coloured string descended, and glancing up he saw Fred, George, Ginny and soon the other three gaki listening into the conversation. Kakashi shrugged; it wasn't like they'd hear anything of great importance. A clone had already told Kakashi what had happened during the meeting, and to him it just seemed to be a lot of arguing over who was on guard duty, whatever it was that they were guarding. Eventually the knot of wizards started to clear, and Kakashi was about to come out of his hidey hole when there was a huge crash.

_"Tonks!" _cried Mrs Weasley in exasperation as a pair of curtains flew open and a blood curdling screech filled the hallway. Immediately, kunai, shuriken and senbon flew through the air with frightening accuracy, landing in the painting that was screaming to make it look like a porcupine. The painting, startled, stopped screeching long enough to allow Amaya to collect the weapons and Lupin and Sirius to pull the curtains closed. Amaya flitted over to Kakashi, returning his weapons, and then turned to face the shocked expressions of the rest of the wizards. After glaring at them to keep quiet, Amaya walked into the kitchen followed by Kakashi. They melted seamlessly back into the shadows, watching as the others helped with dinner. Kakashi noted how Harry wasn't expected to help, under the pretence of having been on a long journey. Kakashi snorted; it was a rubbish excuse. During the war he had been expected to go straight back out on another mission as soon as he got back from one, with barely half an hour's rest in between, unless he had been injured enough to admit that he needed to go to the hospital.

Eventually the food was ready and Kakashi and Amaya came silently to the table, sitting at the same unoccupied seats as they had the day before. Stew was ladled up and passed down, and small bubbles of chatter cropped up along the table. Eventually, the meal came to a close, with people sitting lazily in their chairs and a sleepy haze fell over the occupants. Mrs Weasley was trying to persuade the two shinobi to eat a little more, to 'put some meat on their bones', but both of them adamantly refused, saying that they 'had survived up until now', and that 'there wasn't as much food at home, so they weren't as used to it'.

"Nearly time for bed, I think," said Mrs Weasley, yawning.

"Not just yet, Molly," said Sirius, pushing his plate away. Kakashi's eyes flickered over to Sirius, slightly curious and wary. "You know Harry, I'm surprised that you didn't come bursting in here demanding to know about the whereabouts of You-know-who."

The atmosphere in the room darkened so quickly that Kakashi thought that it was akin to someone coming in and declaring that Konoha was, once again, at war. Where seconds before it had been sleepy and relaxed, it was now alert and tense, the atmosphere similar to that of the ANBU headquarters, were various members waited for their next mission.

"I did!" said Harry indignantly. "I asked Hermione and Ron, but they said that we weren't allowed in the Order, so-"

"And they're quite right," said Mrs Weasley. "You're too young."

She was sitting bolt upright, her fists clenched and every sign of sleepiness gone.

"Since when did someone have to be in the Order to ask questions?" asked Sirius. "Harry's been trapped in that Muggle house for a month. He has the right to know what's been happen-"

"Hang on!" interrupted George loudly. Kakashi's heart sank, and he inwardly cursed Sirius for bringing up the subject in the first place.

"How come Harry gets his questions answered?" said Fred angrily.

"We've been trying to get stuff out of you for a month and you've not told us a single thing!"

"_'You're too young, you're not in the Order,'_" said Fred in a high-pitched voice that sounded uncannily like his mother's. "Harry's not even of age!"

"It's not my fault that you haven't been told what the Order's doing," said Sirius calmly, "that's your parent's decision. Harry, on the other hand-"

"It's not down to you to decide what's good for Harry!" said Mrs Weasley sharply. The expression on her normally kind face looked dangerous. "You haven't forgotten what Dumbledore said, I suppose?"

"Which bit?" Sirius asked politely, but with the air of someone readying for a fight. Kakashi and Amaya's flicked between the two of them, tensing in readiness for a fight.

"The bit about not telling Harry more than he needs to know."

"I don't intend to tell him more than he needs to know, Molly. But as he was the one who saw Voldemort return, he has more right than most of the-"

"He's not a member of the Order! He's only fifteen-"

"So?" This time it was Kakashi who had interrupted his voice level and quiet. All eyes turned to him. "Where we come from, because of the war many of us were required to become adults before we were fifteen. The world is not a kind place, Weasley-san, and the sooner that Potter-kun understands this, then the better." Kakashi sat back again in his chair, leaving Mrs Weasley to sit gaping. Finally she found her voice.

"No. He's too young. He may not be a child, but he's not an adult."

"Molly, he deserves to know." Mrs Weasley looked across at Lupin, who stared back at her levelly.

"But… but…" she spluttered.

"I think that it's better that Harry gets the facts- not all the facts, just the general picture, instead of… ah… a more garbled version from elsewhere."

"Well," said Mrs Weasley, breathing heavily and looking around the table. "Well, I can see that I'm going to be overruled. But, Dumbledore must have had a reason for not wanting Harry to know too much, and as someone with Harry's best interests at heart-"

"He's not your son," said Sirius.

"He's as good as. Who else has he got?"

"He's got me!"

"Look, I think we're missing something here. Why has Potter-kun not got anything?" Lupin sighed, and then turned to answer Amaya's question.

"When Harry was a baby, Voldemort, the most powerful wizard in our time, came to his house to kill him. Instead, he killed Harry's mother and father, James and Lily, leaving just Harry. Voldemort tried to kill Harry, but couldn't and instead the spell he used rebounded on Harry. Harry's the only one to have ever survived the killing curse."

"And that's why this Voldemort person is after him?" asked Kakashi. Lupin nodded.

"Well then, I think Potter-kun should have a say in this." Amaya said simply, folding her arms.

"I want to know what's going on," said Harry at once.

"Very well," said Mrs Weasley, her voice cracking. "Ginny- Ron- Hermione- Fred- George, I want you out of this kitchen right now. You to, Amaya and Kakashi." There was instant uproar.

"We're of age!" bellowed Fred and George together.

"If Harry's allowed, why can't I?" shouted Ron.

"Mum, I _want _to hear!" wailed Ginny.

"NO!" shouted Mrs Weasley, standing up, her eyes over bright. "I absolutely forbid-"

"Molly, you can't stop Fred and George, they are of age. And Kakashi and Amaya are, by the sounds of, just as grown up as any of the Order members. They to deserve to know." Said Mr Weasley wearily.

"I- oh, all right. Fred, George, Amaya and Kakashi can stay then, but Ron-"

"Harry'll tell me and Hermione everything anyway! Won't- won't you?" he added uncertainly, meeting Harry's eyes. There was a split second pause, and then Harry nodded. Ron and Hermione beamed.

"Fine!" shouted Mrs Weasley. "Ginny- bed!"

Ginny did not go quietly. She shouted and stormed all the way upstairs, and when she reached the hall Mrs Black's screams were added to the din. Lupin hurried off to restore calm and Sirius closed the door.

"Ok, Harry, what is it that you want to know?"

"Where's Voldemort? What's he doing? I've been trying to watch the Muggle news and there hasn't been anything that looks like him, no funny deaths or anything."

"That's because there haven't been any funny deaths yet," said Sirius, "not as far as we know… and we know quite a lot."

"More than he thinks, anyway." Said Lupin.

"How come he's stopped killing people?"

"I'm guessing it's because he doesn't want to draw attention to himself," said Kakashi, and Harry looked at him. Sirius nodded.

"It would be dangerous. His comeback didn't come off quite the way he wanted it to. He messed it up."

"Or rather, you messed it up for him," said Lupin with a grin.

"How?" asked Harry, perplexed.

"You weren't supposed to survive!" said Sirius. "Nobody but his Death Eaters were supposed to know he'd come back. But you survived to bear witness."

"What are Death Eaters?" asked Kakashi.

"Voldemort's followers. Some are almost as bad as him," explained Lupin.

"Anyway, the very last person that he wanted alerted to his return the moment he got back was Dumbledore," said Sirius. "And you made sure that Dumbledore was the first person to know when you got back."

"How has that helped?"

"Are you kidding?" said Bill incredulously. "Dumbledore was the only one You-know-who was ever scared of!"

"Thanks to you, Dumbledore was able to recall the Order of the Phoenix about an hour after Voldemort returned," said Sirius.

"So what's the Order been doing?"

"Working as hard as we can to make sure that Voldemort can't carry out his plans," said Sirius.

"How'd you know what his plans are?"

"Dumbledore has a shrewd idea, and Dumbledore's shrewd ideas tend to be correct." Said Lupin.

"So what does Dumbledore reckon he's planning?"

"Well, firstly he wants to build up his army again. In the old days, he had vast numbers at his hands: witches and wizards he'd bullied or bewitched into following him, his faithful Death Eaters, a great variety of Dark creatures. You heard him planning to recruit giants; well, they're just one of the giants that he's after. We're trying to do some recruiting of our own, but the Ministry's not helping."

"Ministry?"

"The Ministry is our government. However, Fudge, the Minister, is refusing to believe that Voldemort's back. In fact, he's trying persuade people that Harry and Dumbledore are making it all up." Amaya frowned.

"But why? If he's the leader, then surely he should know that this person is a threat, and be trying to protect his people. Isn't that what a leader's supposed to do?" Lupin sighed again, running a hand through his hair.

"Fudge is paranoid that Dumbledore is after his job. Dumbledore is much more clever, and a much more powerful wizard. During Fudge's early days at the Ministry, Fudge often contacted Dumbledore for advice. But now it seems he's fond of power, and has convinced himself that Dumbledore is crazy and is simply stirring up trouble. By admitting that Voldemort's back would be admitting to trouble that the Ministry hasn't seen for fourteen years, when Voldemort was last defeated. We're trying to tell people, but since I'm a werewolf and Sirius a convicted mass-murderer with a ten thousand Galleon price on his head, we can't really go strolling down the streets." At this, Amaya snorted.

"Sirius-san, you are no killer, although I suspect you have to be careful with a bounty like that attached to you," she joked, although her eyes were still hard.

"As well as that, it's likely that we'd be arrested if we went around shouting our mouths of," added Bill, "but we've managed to convince a few people."

"Well, if Voldemort's going around recruiting more Death Eaters, then it's not going to stay quiet for very long, is it?" said Harry.

"Well, Voldemort doesn't just march up to people's front doors; he's much cleverer than that. He prefers to operate in secret. But he's also after another thing- a weapon."

"What sort of weapon?"

"Something he didn't have last time. Something he can only get through stealth."

"What sort of weapon? Something worse than Avada Kedavra-?"

"That's enough." Mrs Weasley spoke from the shadows by the door. Harry hadn't realised that she had come back after taking Ginny up to bed. Her arms were crossed and she looked furious.

"You've given Harry plenty of information, any more and you may as well just induct him into the Order straightaway."

"Why not? I want to join, I want to fight."

"No." Kakashi's low, cold voice cut through the room like a knife. "This is war. You are inexperienced and too young, all of you," he added, looking at Fred and George.

"Hang on a minute Hatake, we're older than you here-"began George, but Kakashi interrupted him.

"Technically, yes, you are older than Amaya and me. However, we are older emotionally and mentally, and we have already experienced war. It's not an adventure, or something to play at. It's bitter, and horrible. People you know and care about die, so that in the end you don't make friends or bonds because you'll just lose them. If you think that you're ready for that, then it proves that you are too young because no one is _ever _ready for that." Silence greeted the end of Kakashi's speech, broken only by Mrs Weasley ushering everyone upstairs to bed.

**A/N: Wahoo, each chapter is getting longer and longer! In my other stories, long chapters for me are just over 2000 words long… XD **

**Please Review!**

**Fallen Quills.**


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N: Amaya is mine, but apart from that I own nada.**

Amaya and Kakashi followed the others upstairs to bed. Hermione tiptoed into the room where Ginny was supposed to be sleeping, and Amaya walked normally, years of being a ninja teaching her how to not make a single noise when walking. They needn't have bothered, though, for as soon as they had slid into their respective beds Ginny shot up, switching the bedside lamp on so that the room was bathed in a soft glow.

"Well?" she asked impatiently.

"'Well' what?" asked Amaya, untying her headband and putting it carefully on top of her folded clothing.

"What happened downstairs? What were you talking about?"

"Not much. They were just saying that all their doing is some recruiting," said Amaya before Hermione could open her mouth, shooting Hermione a warning glance. Hermione saw it, and nodded.

"That's right. You didn't really miss anything." Ginny's eyes flickered between the two of them, and Amaya stared coldly back at her. In the end, Ginny made a small noise in the back of her throat, switched off the light, and went to sleep.

The next morning, Kakashi and Amaya found themselves, once again, being roped in to helping clean the house. They had moved on from the study to the drawing room, and found themselves donning tea towels over their faces (well, Amaya did, Mrs Weasley deemed Kakashi's usual mask sufficient enough) and clutching large spray bottles. As soon as the door was shut after Ron and Harry had entered, Mrs Weasley peered into an open book lying on an old armchair, reading the instructions.

"Right, you lot, be careful because Doxys bite and their teeth are poisonous. I've got a bottle of antidote here, but I would rather not have to use it." She straightened up, positioned herself squarely in front of buzzing, mould green coloured curtains, and beckoned them all forward.

"When I say the word, start spraying immediately. They'll come flying out at us, I expect, but the book says that one good squirt should paralyse them. When they're immobilised, then just throw them into this bucket." She carefully stepped out of their line of fire, and raised her own spray.

"All right- _squirt!_" Amaya found that she enjoyed this part of cleaning. Normally, when on guarding missions, she was forced to walk with a feudal lord or some other VIP in a posh looking carrier. The best thing about those missions was the fact that, usually, there was some sort of ambush to be taken care of. However, so far on this mission she had been stuck inside a house without even the chance of training to take her mind off things. However, this spraying, whilst some might find it dull, was therapeutic for Amaya. With this spraying, Kakashi and Amaya could use the accuracy and awareness that came with being a ninja. Plus, with the poison, if they could analyse it, it could be useful back home in Konoha.

"_Hey, do you think we could steal a few to study the venom? I'm pretty sure that we don't have the antidote back home, and it could be useful," _muttered Amaya to Kakashi as she sidled up to him.

"_I don't see why not. It seems that Fred-kun and George-kun are also stealing Doxys." _Amaya glanced over at Fred, and sure enough she saw that he dropped an unconscious Doxy into his pocket.

"_Right then. I guess we can skim a few off the top of the bucket when we're done. Do you have a sealing scroll on you?" _Kakashi nodded. They moved slightly apart and carried on with the cleaning. Eventually the curtain hung limp, the bucket crammed with Doxys and a bowl of their black eggs sitting in front of it, of which Fred, George, Kakashi and Amaya shot covetous looks towards.

"I think we'll tackle _those _after lunch," said Mrs Weasley as she pointed to the dusty glass-fronted cabinets standing on either side of the mantelpiece. They were crammed with an odd assortment of objects: a selection of rusty daggers that had previously caught the shinobi's eyes, claws, a coiled snakeskin, a number of tarnished silver boxes inscribed with foreign languages and, least pleasant of all, an ornate crystal bottle with a large opal set in the stopper, full of what Kakashi and Amaya recognised as congealed blood.

The clanging doorbell rang, and everyone looked at Mrs Weasley.

"Stay here," she ordered as Mrs Black's screeches filled the house. "I'll bring up a tray of sandwiches." She left the room, followed closely by Kakashi and Amaya. Kakashi went upstairs, Amaya following Mrs Weasley but stopping in front of the portrait.

"FILTH! SCUM! BISMIRCHING THE HOUSE OF MY ANCESTORS-"

"If I were you," said Amaya, suddenly appearing next to the portrait, "I would learn from my mistakes last time and not scream this time." She withdrew a kunai and beginning spinning it around her finger for emphasis. The painted Mrs Black stopped screeching and looked at it nervously. "Of course, you are just a portrait, so you may not be able to learn from mistakes…" she trailed off. Mrs Black opened her mouth angrily to yell some more, but one more look at the kunai in Amaya's hand and she closed it again. Amaya smirked, and put away the kunai before pushing off the wall with the one leg that was resting against it.

"WE ARE NOT RUNNING A HIDEOUT FOR STOLEN GOODS!" Mrs Weasley's voice penetrated the gloomy hallway, and Amaya felt like banging her head against the wall. Why was this house so damn noisy?_ Maybe I've spent too much time in ANBU,_ Amaya mused. _Hardly anyone speaks in that place. _She sauntered along until she was standing behind Mrs Weasley and Mundungus, hidden in the shadows. "IT IS COMPLETELY IRRESPONSIBLE, AS IF WE HAVEN'T GOT ENOUGH TO WORRY ABIUT WITHOUT YOU DRAGGING STOLEN CAULDRONS INTO THE HOUSE! WHAT ARE WE EXPECTED TO HOUSE NEXT, HM?"

"N-no, Molly, ye see the thing is-"

"NO I DO NOT SEE! THIS IS NOT A DUMP FOR THE THINGS THAT YOU HAVE STOLEN!" Amaya winced, and backed silently upstairs, pressing her finger to her lips when passing Mrs Black and slipping back into the drawing room unnoticed. A small creature was in the middle of the room, and was currently muttering to himself.

"Hello Kreacher," said Fred loudly, closing the door with a snap. The thing froze, stopped muttering and gave such a false start of surprise that Amaya made a mental note to give it some acting lessons.

"Kreacher did not see young master," he said, turning around and bowing to Fred. Still facing the carpet, he added perfectly clearly, "Nasty little brat of a blood traitor it is."

"Sorry" said George. "Didn't catch that last bit."

"Kreacher said nothing," said Kreacher with a second bow to George, adding in clear undertone, "and there's its twin, unnatural little beasts they are." Amaya stared at Kreacher in bemusement, biting back and uncharacteristic bubble of laughter. The thing straightened up, eyeing everyone malevolently, apparently under the impression that they could not hear him as he continued to mutter.

"And there is the Mudblood, standing as bold as brass, oh if my mistress knew, oh how'd she cry, and there's a new boy, Kreacher doesn't know his name…"

"This is Harry, Kreacher," said Hermione kindly. Kreacher stiffened. "Harry Potter."

"The Mudblood is talking to Kreacher as though she is his friend, if Kreacher's mistress saw him in such company, oh, what would she say-"

"Don't call her a Mudblood!" said Ron and Ginny together, very angrily.

"Excuse me, but what is a 'Mudblood'? And what _is _Kreacher, exactly?" asked Amaya, cutting in before Hermione could say anything. The door opened softly and Kakashi entered as well, so that both shinobi were facing everyone else in the room, their backs to the door.

"A Mudblood is an insult used for those who are muggle born," explained Harry. Kakashi frowned.

"So how come they're called Mudblood then?"

"Because apparently they don't have 'pure blood'," continued Ron.

"And Kreacher here is a house-elf," explained Hermione.

"And what do they do?" asked Amaya.

"They're like servants." said Ron.

"No, they are more like slaves," said Hermione hotly.

"Don't get her started on the subject, she goes on for hours about 'elf rights' and other rubbish," commented Ron. Amaya and Kakashi ignored him. Kreacher turned to look at Amaya and Kakashi, who stared back.

"Kreacher does not know these people, they are not Mudbloods or Pure Bloods or Blood traitors… Kreacher does not know what they are."

"This is Amaya and Kakashi, Kreacher," said Ginny. Kreacher bowed to the shinobi, continuing his utterances of confusion. Just then, the door opened and Sirius walked in.

"What are you doing in here anyway Kreacher?" Kreacher flung himself into a ridiculously low bow, saying, "Cleaning."

"A likely story. Straighten up! Now, what are you really doing in here?"

"Kreacher is cleaning," the elf repeated. "Kreacher lives to serve the most Noble House of Black-"

"And it's getting blacker every day, it's filthy," said Sirius.

"Master always liked his little joke," said Kreacher, bowing again, and continuing in an undertone, "Master was a nasty ungrateful little swine who broke his mother's heart-"

"My mother didn't have a heart, Kreacher, she kept herself alive out of pure spite," snapped Sirius. Kreacher bowed again.

"Whatever Master says," he muttered furiously. "Master is not fit to wipe the slime from his mother's boots, oh, my poor mistress, what would she say if she saw Kreacher serving him now, how she hated him, what a disappointment he was-"

"I asked what you were up to," said Sirius coldly. "Every time you show up pretending to be cleaning you sneak something to your room so we can't throw it out."

"Kreacher would never move something from its proper place in Master's house," said the elf. "But Kreacher would never allow the tapestry to be thrown out, oh, it would break poor Mistress' heart, seven centuries old-"

"I thought it might be that. No doubt she's put another permanent sticking charm on it, but if I can throw it out, I will. Now go away, Kreacher." Not daring to disobey a direct order, Kreacher bowed once more and shuffled out, muttering as he did so. Amaya looked at Kakashi with a raised eyebrow. The door opened once more, and Mrs Weasley came in, her face read and a tray held aloft in front of her, laden with sandwiches and cake. She set it down and the tray was immediately swarmed with the teenagers. Kakashi hung back, studying the tapestry, or more specifically the small burn holes in it. Sirius came up to him.

"Our dear family tree. My mother blasted anyone off who, in her eyes, 'disgraced the family'."

"So are you on there?" Sirius gave a mirthless laugh.

"No. She blasted me off when I was sixteen. I ran away," he added, looking at the tree morosely. Kakashi made a non-committal grunt at the back of his throat. Suddenly, Obito's eye was starting to tear up, and he turned away quickly, swallowing the lump in his throat. For some reason, he was forcibly reminded of his father, and how the village treated him after _that _mission.

After lunch, the party moved onto clearing out the dusty cabinet at the back of the room. Many of the objects inside seemed to be very reluctant to leave there dusty shelves. Sirius sustained a very bad bite from a silver snuff box that caused his entire hand to develop an unpleasant crusty coating that he magicked away with a tap of his wand, and a small tweezer like object with a horn at the end clamped itself onto Amaya's nose. Kakashi yanked it off much to Mrs Weasley's horror and he threw it away after examining it interestedly.

Other unpleasant instruments and objects were found, thrown away and then 'rescued' by Fred, George or Kreacher as the afternoon wore on. A silver trinket box that caused a sleep genjutsu effect when opened was chucked out, as was a heavy locket that no one could open, a number of ancient seals and an Order of Merlin First Class. Kreacher burst into furious tears when Sirius wrested a large, gold ring bearing the Black family crest from his grip.

"It was my father's," said Sirius, chucking it into the bulging black sack of thrown out items. "Kreacher was never as found of him as my mother, but I still caught him snogging a pair of my father's trousers the other week."

0o0o0o0o0

Over the next few days, Mrs Weasley kept them all working very hard. Amaya's leg also healed well enough for training to resume, and she and Kakashi passed the nights training separately, occasionally stopping to spar against each other. The work during the day and the training during the night led them to have unhealthy, pale skin that Mrs Weasley noticed and brought up one evening whilst everyone else was, for once, busy doing separate things.

"Are you and Amaya okay? You hardly eat anything at all, and it looks like you haven't slept in weeks," she said concernedly.

"We are fine, thank you, Weasley-san," said Kakashi, attempting to placate her.

"Hm. Well, if you ever need anything, don't hesitate to ask, understand?" Kakashi nodded, and Mrs Weasley pursed her lips. "Well then, tomorrow Harry is going to his hearing," at this Kakashi rolled his visible eye. "And I was wondering whether one of you was going to go with him." Kakashi considered this for a moment.

"Weasley-san, what are the threat levels for Harry going to this hearing?"

"Well, I'm not sure exactly, it will be in a building full of Aurors and there will be Order members there…"

"Is Dumbledore-sama expected to visit here before the meeting?"

"Yes."

"Then I will ask him about the arrangements for Potter-kun's hearing then." Mrs Weasley opened her mouth as if going to say something else, but closed it again nodding instead.

0o0o0o0o0o0

That evening, Mrs Weasley turned to Harry, saying that she had ironed his best clothes for him. A silence spread over the table, and Kakashi laid down the chopsticks he was using (he and forks didn't get on), watching Harry intently.

"How am I getting there?" Harry asked Mrs Weasley, trying (and failing to Kakashi) to sound unconcerned.

"Arthur's taking you to work with him," said Mrs Weasley gently. "And I think that Amaya and Kakashi are tagging along as well, as they have to meet Fudge." Mr Weasley smiled at Harry encouragingly from across the table.

"You can wait in my office until it's time for the hearing," he said. Harry looked at Sirius, but Mrs Weasley answered his question before it could leave his mouth

"Professor Dumbledore doesn't think it's a good idea for Sirius to go with you, and I must say, I-"

"-think he's _quite right_," finished Sirius through gritted teeth. Mrs Weasley pursed her lips and Kakashi sighed imperceptibly.

"When did Dumbledore tell you that?" Harry said, staring at Sirius.

"He came last night, when you were in bed," said Mr Weasley. Sirius stabbed at a potato moodily with his fork, and Kakashi zoned out, toying with the leftover food on his plate, going over his alibi for tomorrow.

**A/N: It's finally finished! I started writing this ages ago, but finally finished it today. Sorry if half of it is completely illegible, the only reason that you're getting the update today instead of the weekend is because I am at home with the worst cold known to humanity. Also, if there are little bits that I didn't get that should have been changed, then I am going to blame my new kittens, who are beyond cute but like to play with my laptop. As in, walk over the keyboard, play with the charger lead and chew on my headphones. They are cute though! ^o^**

**Please Review and tell me if it makes any sense whatsoever! **

**Fallen Quills.**


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